Matthew Thompson's Blog (Page 1)

One of my favorite parts of fall is the return of warming, stick-to-your-ribs comfort foods. And for me one of the all-time classics is oatmeal. I practically lived on the stuff all through elementary and middle school; now I find it to be the perfect cool-weather start to my day.

And that’s not just a matter of taste. Oatmeal is one of the healthiest breakfasts there is. It’s high in soluble fiber, which may help to lower “bad” LDL cholesterol and helps keep you feeling full longer. It has a healthy amount of protein, which, in conjunction with fiber, will help you feel satisfied too. Plus oatmeal is a low-glycemic-index (GI) food—and...

Forget spring-cleaning: fall is the perfect time to spruce up your kitchen. Now that you’ve recovered from the laziness of summer (maybe I’m projecting a bit here) but before the craziness of the holiday season, there’s a perfect window for tossing those mystery items in the back of your fridge, replacing that gray-looking sponge sitting by your sink and cleaning those drips from the ceiling of your microwave. And while you’re scrubbing your cooking area to make it look nicer, you may as well do a few things to make it healthier too. Here, I’ve compiled some of the best, simple tricks that we’ve published in EatingWell over the years that will help make your kitchen a healthier place for you and your family.

1. Print out a list of the Dirty Dozen. Pesticide exposure is linked with diseases...

There’s something about that moment when you bite into the first, fresh, perfectly tart apple of the autumn season that reminds you: “Yes, this is what fall is supposed to taste like.” But while I love pretty much all in-season apple varieties, they’re not all equally suited for every purpose. I definitely plan to do some baking this fall (Don’t hate: Nothing goes better with Sunday afternoon football—Go Giants!), and when I do I’ll reach for certain types of apples while avoiding others. Ditto making salads, cooking, making applesauce or just eating an apple whole.

So how do you know which kind of apple is best to buy? I’ve created this handy guide for picking the right apple for every occasion.

Before we begin, a quick note: It’s good to keep in mind that, regardless of what kind of apple...

I used to be able to convince myself that the money I spent eating out was reasonable, but then my wife and I started tracking our expenses. The results were eye-opening: I spend this much in restaurants? Clearly, a change needed to happen. It came in the form of a $2 piece of plastic—the Tupperware container I use to start bringing my own lunch. And though the savings is only a little bit each day, I started noticing the extra money in my pocket pretty quickly.

Recently, my life has taken a turn for the bananas: among many other things, my wife and I are in the process of moving into a new place—so our living room has been colonized by boxes, our weekends taken up by trips to Goodwill and our kitchen half-dismantled as we decide which appliances deserve to make the trip with us. But for all the busyness—and there’s been plenty, believe me—we still find time to cook a healthy dinner every night. How do we do it? Well, if you must know: we cheat.